HOUSTON --
Two people were killed in a two-alarm fire that ripped through their Southwest Houston apartment complex early Monday.
Houston firefighters said the blaze broke out in a downstairs unit at the Greenhouse Patio Apartments on West Airport Boulevard near Sandpiper Drive shortly before 5 a.m. Monday.
Most residents escaped from their homes when they smelled smoke and saw the flames.
"Screaming and flames -- that's all I saw and heard," resident Fredrick Sparks said.
"I was sound asleep and I could smell it," Joanne Price said. "The burn smell woke me up."
Investigators said two people did not make it out alive. The victims were a husband and wife in their 60s who were also grandparents. Their bodies were found huddled together in a closet shortly before noon after the fire had been extinguished. Their identities have not been released.
"I knew there was an elderly couple inside because I heard them screaming. But, by that time, it had already blown up in flames, then," Sparks said of the fire at the apartments.
A firefighter was injured while working to put out the fierce flames.
"He went up on the second floor," Deputy Chief Herman Gonzalez said. "Part of the floor burned out and his leg was wrapped up."
The firefighter was taken to Memorial Hermann Hospital for treatment. His condition was not released.
Some residents went door to door to make sure everyone knew about the fire. Sucholah Hall said she hurt her wrist while trying to alert one tenant.
"I slit my wrist because they wouldn't get out, so I busted their windows down," Hall said.
Fire officials said 16 apartments were destroyed.
Firefighters said several hot spots popped up throughout the morning Monday. At one point, the heat caused ammunition that was inside the building to go off.
"We have a lot of obstacles," Assistant Chief Karen Dupont said. "We're going to be very thorough when going through the debris."
Parts of the burned-out building were removed with heavy equipment.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
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